Muslims have to be floating voters, do not be unquestioningly loyal to one party, make them work hard for your vote, and if this has whetted your political appetite, join your local parties, select your own candidate & make that change!

UPDATE

The government owned mouthpiece (BBC) and Murdochs empire (Sky et al) are pushing the line that “it woz the muzlims that won it” very disingenuous and disappointing to play the race card.

Perhaps it’s wise to read the blog of Chris Howson, Priest for the City of Bradford and why he (and presumably his congregation) voted for Respect & George Galloway:

The rest of the weekend I spent campaigning for Respect, to do for barely two days what my dear friend was committed to doing for so long.

It was a touching tribute to Abu-Bakr that the entire Respect team were decked out in the following T-Shirts:

It’s clear that we’re in a two horse race, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats are ranked at 80/1 outsiders. It’s between Respect and Labour for the seat.

The turnout at local events has been amazing, with Mosques, community centres and local housing estates all getting face time with the entire Respect team.

For the first time in decades, the people of Bradford have realised that they have been taken as fools by the Labour machine. Their unstinting loyalty to Labour has been taken for granted and has got them absolutely nowhere, and boy are Labour running scared, why else send the top brass, like Andy Burnham to Bradford to help rally the locals.

The people have also realised, the feudal “baradari” system has been played to a tee by the Labour party, for generations members of the same clans have dominated the local political spectrum. The chai-wallah that served the master so well in the days of the Raj, has been alive and well in Bradford for the last fourty years.

But not any more.

Today the people of Bradford have a real choice to make.

More of the same corrupt practices, or a party that actually practice what they preach.

If you’re unsure of the quality of the candidates, then watch the above video from this week’s BBC Politics Show. Notice how the beeb gave every candidate an easy line of questioning, but not Respect’s George Galloway, who got the hardest time. The cozy establishment in Parliament and media does not want any dissenting opinions.

Also understand that Imran Hussain is a pro war candidate who wishes to stamp out “extremism” in Afghanistan and continue to send British troops to die for America’s wars of blood and treasure.

There are no words that can fully describe the heartbreak and absolute shock of Abu-bakr Rauf’s passing. Barely 30, he died of a suspected heart attack, outside Mumtaz restaurant in Bradford, while leafleting for George Galloway’s election campaign.

With his impeccable manners and keen intellect, Abu-bakr was a rare specimen, a one of a kind. He came across as undoubtedly humble and had a smile that could truly light up your entire week – he simply was one of the most likeable persons I have ever met. I had the pleasure of working with him in Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK (MPACUK) many a time, and I cannot count the number of times people would finish a conversation with him and turn around to me and say “what a great guy!”.

Even though he has gone and is no longer with us, he has left behind him one clear and simple legacy and I know Abu-bakr would have wanted me to share this with you all. He had a great love and sympathy for all the oppressed in the world, but without a doubt he loved his Palestinian brothers and sisters the most. He passed away leafleting for George Galloway’s Bradford campaign earlier this afternoon, but let me be clear, he did all this leafleting and campaigning not because he owed some allegiance to George or because he had ambitions for politics. He never owed anything to MPAC, PSC, Respect or any of the other countless organisations he worked in.

The only reason he did any of this was because he loved Palestinians, and this was his way of helping. He just wasn’t like many of us in that he could live his life oblivious to the oppression that Muslims and non-Muslims alike were facing all over the world. His cause, his passion was to right these wrongs and there aren’t many who have departed this life whilst doing what they love. Allah is indeed the Master and Judge of us all, but let me tell you this, Abubakr died a Shaheed. He died as he struggled to help the oppressed, he passed away as he strived in Allah’s way – and that is the noblest way to depart this world. His last word was ‘Palestine’.

May Allah bestow upon him every bounty a Muslim of his stature deserves, and may He give us even an iota of the brilliance and faith Abubakr possessed. Our sympathies and prayers are with his family, his wife and his child.

The Hajj Exhibition at the British Museum is viewed as a great dawah opportunity by many Muslims. As far as I’m concerned it’s a propaganda piece for the House of Saud project & it’s Orientalist backers.

After much cajoling by friends, I finally bit the bullet and decided to attend the Hajj Exhibition in London, more as an excuse to catch up with old friends and less to actually have my own religion and history explained to me.

For years I’ve avoided the British Museum, despite its new atrium and the sheer wonder of it’s architectural splendour, it’s the contents of the building that trouble me. The swag, the loot, the filthy lucre, centuries of ill gotten gain courtesy of the British Empire looting and pillaging from every known corner of the globe, for King, Queen & Country dear boy.

Putting those issues aside, I entered the exhibition and within the very few first minutes, whilst reading one of the plaques, I remarked to one of my friends:

“Harry St. John Philby? You know who he is right?”

Harry St. John Bridger Philby (1885-1960) Riyadh

Instead of talking about the importance of the Hajj or what the central role of Mecca is to Islam, why would they (the backers of the exhibition) choose to talk about Harry St. John Philby?

Harry St. John Philby, as the blurb said, was among one of the first westerners to enter Mecca (pretend to be a Muslim) to undertake the Hajj and to see what it was that drives Muslims to carry out the pilgrimage.

What it didn’t tell you, and what most people would just walk right past without noticing is that Harry St. John Philby was a spy who worked for the British Military Intelligence. His progeny would be one Kim Philby, who would work the same field as his father and end up being exposed as a double agent working for the KGB.

As we continued down the exhibition path and my disdain beginning to recede somewhat, I noticed there was an entire section on the “Arab Revolt”.

Yes.

The Arab Revolt that was created by men like Philby & Lawrence (of Arabia) of the British “Mesopotamian Expeditionary Force” to launch an armed uprising against the Caliphate.

So what you have is a foreign superpower (Britain) effectively aiding, abetting and installing by means of outright terrorism, a puppet regime that will favour it (sound familiar? Libya, Syria) whilst destroying the Islamic Empire at the same time.

It’s always been the Orientalists dream to understand the strength of Islam and what drives Muslims. Once they figured it out, they could subtly deconstruct that core element to drive their own agenda. For example we have London’s SOAS University , which was created with a remit to train the future leaders of the former British colonies to run them just as their past colonial masters had done so. It’s no coincidence that Mirza Tahir Ahmad, the former leader of The Qadiani’s was trained at SOAS.

You can read Said Nasir’s book, ‘The History of the Saud Family’, where it’s maintained that in 1943, the Saudi ambassador to Egypt, Abdullah bin Ibrahim al Muffadal, paid Muhammad al Tamami to forge a family tree showing that the Sauds and Wahhabs were one family that descended directly from the Prophet Mohammed SAW to strengthen their legitimacy as rulers.

You see it’s not that difficult to run counter propaganda.

The truth is that many Muslims are ignorant of their own history and religion.

For a religion that was unveiled with the words IQRA! (Read!) we as a people know little of Islam nevermind the knowledge of our history or the treachery committed by those who garb themselves in cloaks of respectability and piety.

A people who don’t read will fall for anything.

Iqra….Iqra….IQRA!!!

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UPDATE

It seems that Qaisra Khan, the project curator of the Hajj Exhibition at the British Museum has read what I’ve written and has labelled me an extremist for writing this blog.

I am willing to share a platform with Qaisra Khan or anyone from the British Museum if they wish to debate me on what I’ve written.

In IRAQ they hate us the CIA put Saddam Hussein into power and manipulated Iraq and Iran into a war. We sold weapons to Saddam – 1.5 million people died in the Iran-Iraq war. Then came the Desert Storm campaign, depleted uranium, 10 years of UN sanctions led to almost a million dead children and the latest Iraq invasion, over a 1 million Iraqis have died as a result of American interference in Iraq.

In CHILE they hate us because we got rid of their Preseident Salvador Allende, killed in an American-sponsored coup, led by General Augusto Pinochet. Pinochet’s rise to power, organised by the CIA and Henry Kissinger, began nearly twenty years of military dictatorship that led to thousands of deaths. 30,000 people were massacred in the weeks following this September 11th, as Pinochet tried to wipe out those who opposed fascism. Years later our British friends welcomed the war criminal Pinochet with open arms and gave him sanctuary.

In The Congo they hate us as we gave them a military dictatorship thanks to the CIA assassination of Patrice Lumumba. The Congo conflict has led to at least 3 million deaths.

In Cambodia they hate us (& Britain) for backing the Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot who killed nearly 2 million Cambodians.

Since the Second World War, the US government has bombed 21 countries:

China in 1945-46 and again in 1950-53,

Korea in 1950-53

In Korea, nearly 3 million civilians were murdered by the USA and its allies. Civilians were murdered at No Gun Ri and many other places. The USA supported the fascist puppet regime in South Korea. The South Korean government carried out genocide against both North and South Korean people.

Guatemala in 1954, 1960, and 1967-69

Indonesia in 1958

Up to one million innocent civilians died in Indonesia after the CIA put Suharto into power in Indonesia. At least one third of the population of East Timor died after the USA gave Suharto permission to invade that country.

Vietnam in 1961-73

North Vietnam did not want a war. The US military-industrial complex made sure that there was a war. Through the Phoenix Program, hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese were tortured to death in “interrogation centres”.

These torture centres were built by the United States. Women were always raped as part of the torture before being murdered. This terrorism, rape and mass-murder was the policy of the USA. The My Lai massacre itself was an operation of the Phoenix Program.

Up to 5 million Vietnamese were killed in the Vietnam war.

Congo in 1964.

Laos in 1964-73,The United States Air Force dropped the equivalent of a planeload of bombs every eight minutes for nine years on the people of Laos — from 1965 to 1973. Over 2,000,000 tons.This was some of the heaviest aerial bombardment in world history.

While the people of Yemen risk life and limb in a year of bloody protests, the Sauds & the US carry out a “show election” for a new president.

With their being only one candidate standing unopposed, how do you expect Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi not to win. There wasn’t even a Yes or No option to be had on the ballot, the only vote was for Hadi, the only vote is a YES and there’s no chances he can lose.

This new dictator was vice president under Saleh for 17 years and while Saleh kicks back after his 33 years in charge, in New York under his immunity deal, his right hand man runs the country, while his family control the security apparatus.

“Yemen has proved its ability to move from the past to the present via ballot boxes”

I’m drawn between tears and laughter as to how exactly has Yemen become the model for peaceful transition that the Obama administration proclaim it to be.

Predictably, the corporate media has avoided coverage on this issue but chosen instead to focus on Putin’s fixed election in Russia, a tactic to deflect attention away from the role of “The West” in Yemen.

If they did, they would allow a full election with more than one candidate.

The only place where democracy is acceptable, is where America’s candidate is electable.

Just like Obama himself, this is another change that no one can believe in.

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If you wish to get a further understanding on Britain’s colonial exploits in Yemen, I’d recommend you watch a documentary by Adam Curtis – The Mayfair Set

The first episode “Who Pays Wins”, tells the story of one Colonel Sir Archibald David Stirling, World War II British Army officer, founder of the Special Air Service and Mercenary.

Worried that Britain was losing its power after the War, Stirling organised deals to sell British weapons and military personnel to other countries, like Yemen & Saudi Arabia, for various privatised foreign policy operations. Stirling along with other associates formed Watchguard International Ltd. He was also linked along with an associate Denys Rowley in a failed attempt to overthrow Gaddafi of Libya in 1970/71.

For the last twelve months, I’ve seen more death and illness visit my people than at any other stage in my life. Both young and old, healthy and ill, there’s been no escape from the malak al-maut (angel of death), the idiom “death is certain” has come to embed itself into my conciousness at every breathing minute, whether I’m visiting someone in hospital or watching the news on TV, all I see is death and destruction.

That’s not to say I’m riddled with angst or depression, I know that Allah will never give us a burden that we cannot carry and we will be tested, no one gets an easy pass in life.

So what gets us through the trials we face?

Emaan….Belief

That this life is but a blink of an eye and the life that awaits us is much greater than we can comprehend.

Roughly 18 months ago, a dear friend of mine and his wife were expecting to have a baby. She suffered a miscarriage and the baby was lost. The impact it had on their life was monumental. As a friend of twenty years, I did what I could to alleviate their grief, but the truth is no matter what I did, I couldn’t help them.

In three weeks from today, they are expecting their first child, not one child, but triplets, all boys.

Allah takes and Allah gives. In both there is a test for us.

Over time, I myself and many others have been unsure over what duah to make or how to act in certain situations.

A book titled “Fortress of the Muslim” (Hisnul-Muslim), which contains Duahs/Invocations from the Qur’an & Sunnah, has been of great help to me and as such I wanted to share it with you.

This life is temporary and the days of hell are eternal, instead of calling Allahs name when your faith is bare, walk straight and give Allah praise & your prayer.

"Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil & believes in Allah has grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold that never breaks. And Allah hears & knows all things."
(The Qur'an, Al-Baqara, 2: 256)

“Political authority & religion are kin brothers, neither would stand but by its companion; because religion is the foundation of political power & its pillar, & political power is the guardian of religion; political power is not established with a foundation & religion cannot be implemented without authority.”
- Shaykh Muhammad al-Yaqoubi

"War is not merely a political act, but also a political instrument, a continuation of political relations, a carrying out of the same by other means" - Clausewitz

"O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes that ye may know each other (not that ye may despise each other). Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things)."
(The Qur'an, Al Hujurat, 49: 13)